The invention relates to a process and apparatus for preparing material webs made of packaging material in conjunction with the production of (cigarette) packs, it being the case that the blanks which are severed from the material web have at least one fold, in particular a Z-shaped fold--Z-fold--which extends within the material web, in the longitudinal direction of the same, and/or a border-side, double-layered region formed by virtue of a border strip being folded over.
The invention is concerned with the handling of comparatively thin packaging material such as paper, film or the like, for producing, in particular, cigarette packs of the soft-pack type.
For specifically configured packs of this type, the blank needs to be prepared by having folds provided.
These folds are produced in the region of the continuous material web, with the result that the blanks which are severed from the material web already have the folds. For a prime example, as far as the configuration of the packs is concerned, you are referred to U.S. Pat. No. 5,762,186. In the case of this type of pack, a double-layered fold running all the way round, namely a Z-fold, is provided in the top region, adjacent to an end wall. Furthermore, folding tabs may be formed in a double-layered manner in the region of a base wall, to be precise by a folded-over border strip formed over the length of the blank. These folds are intended to be produced in the region of the material web.